Alice Springs Hospital medical officer recruitment

Emergency medicine

The Emergency Department at the Alice Springs Hospital sees approximately 46,000 patients a year, of which about 30 per cent are children.

The medicine is incredibly interesting. Rheumatic heart disease, bronchiectasis, chronic liver disease, renal disease, and diabetes are all prevalent, in a young population (median age 34).

Overwhelming sepsis is common. Trauma is also common, with motor vehicle accidents (MVAs), truncal and thigh stabbings, and blunt trauma from assault. Indigenous Australians account for 78 per cent of attendances. Our admission rate of 38 per cent reflects the high acuity of presentations.

Our medical workforce consists of interns, Resident Medical Officer (RMOs) and Senior Resident Medical Officer (SRMOs), Registrars and Emergency Department Consultants. We also have rotating medical students. Our registrars are predominantly ACEM trainees, with a number of General Practitioner/Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) trainees, many of whom undertake the Emergency Medicine Certificate or Diploma.

Specialist staff provide a supportive, enthusiastic, educational and safe working environment, and are rostered on the floor from 0730-2400 and on-call overnight.

ED Interns and Residents

Interns and residents in emergency medicine undertake a variety of day, evening and night shifts. You are given three hours of consultant-led protected teaching on a Wednesday afternoon. Rotations in emergency can be arranged through Medical Administration as part of a mixed rotation year.

ED SRMOs

The ED also employs SRMOs as a specific rotation. SRMOs need to be at least PGY3 and have at least three months previous ED experience.

You will do 4 x 10 hour shifts per week and are supervised directly by the specialist (except at night) where you are supervised by the night registrar. We encourage the SRMOs who are not in ACEM training, to complete the Emergency Medicine Certificate as a six-month undertaking.

ED Registrars

The ED is accredited for 18 months adult emergency medicine training plus the paediatric log book. We also offer accredited rotations to intensive care, anaesthetics, medicine, paediatrics and retrieval. In addition we have a Rural and Remote Special Skills terms (3-6 months) for advanced trainees based in Tennant Creek Hospital.

There are four hours of protected registrar teaching each week. We are supportive of both the primary and fellowship exams, with good success in both, and offer exam training and assistance.

We will accept both applications for the whole year, or rotations for three or six months where you could come out here for one or more terms and return to your base hospital. You may be able to arrange this with your Director in Emergency Medicine Training (DEMT) or Director.

This is a great place to come to for your six months non-tertiary placement, to gain experience if you are thinking of doing voluntary service overseas, or if you are interested in broadening your experience of emergency medicine or Aboriginal health.